The Legend
by Anime Fan18.0
Summary: Nefarious returns, with an army of Dreadzone bots! When Ratchet attempts to stop him, he discovers darker forces working in the shadows. Not only that, he must help stop this evil from unleashing a being capable of destroying all life as we know it! R&R!
1. SHE CAME BY?

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Ratchet and Clank or any other characters. They belong to Insomniac.

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A lone person stood out in the dark desert… a desert that covered the land of Veldin. Anyone who had half a brain could tell she was female. Her sleek and beautiful figure made it hard not to. The female was 17 yrs. of age, and was a humanoid-cat hybrid. She had golden fur, and white, triangular shaped stripes, which ran from the base of the triangle on the outline of her arm and stomach, to the center of her body, but ended halfway, through her arm. She had a triangle strips below each of her eyes, which were an unusually shade of red, pointing down. She had a cat tale, with a white tip. She wore a long sleeved shirt, cut to show a little of her stomach, which was white and a pair of blue jeans. Her hair was also white, but with silver highlights. She had a belt in her pants, and tied to that was an _Infinity- Storage-Container_ (A new product of gadgetron) and one could only imagine the weaponry inside.

After starring for a moment more she said to herself, "I know you're out there, dragon. You can't hide from my family forever. I _will_ find you and destroy you before anyone can use your power for evil again!"

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In a semi-underground home, a cat-dog-human hybrid stirs in his bed…when suddenly, an alarm clock blares to life, ringing its metal off.

"Ugh, I don't wanna' go to school…" it mumbled. Alas, it kept ringing.

It rang at full blast for 15 seconds more, when suddenly, a Devastator missile blew it up. The creature mumbles to itself, "Dang alarm clock. Why did I _ever_ let Clank buy that thing?" The Lombax stood up, and in light coming from a window above ground, one could see it was none-other than Ratchet. "-_Yawn-_, I wonder if Clank's up."

Suddenly, the robot in question, being less than 3 ft. tall, came in. "Hello, Ratchet," the tiny robot greeted. "I hope you slept well this time." Ratchet had been having some whopper nightmares since his escape from Dreadzone, so he had decided to recede back to Veldin for some R&R.

Alas, this question became routine for Clank, and Ratchet gave his normal reply of, "You know, same old dream." He said it groggily, since he had just woken up.

"I see…" Clank replied. He hated to see his friend in this much agony, but had no power to stop it. He brightened a little when he said, "You may be happy to know that Sasha came by earlier and requested you meet her at the Phoenix.

"WHAT!?" Ratchet yelled, all traces of sleepy-ness vanishing. "YOU MEAN SHE CAME _HERE_ AND YOU DIDN"T WAKE ME UP?!?" Ratchet, besides being a hero, was also her boyfriend. However, because her dad, who was also the Galactic President, didn't seem to like him, he rarely got to see her anymore. Last time he saw her was when he got back form Dread Zone, and even then, they had a fight about Ratchet's little _"trip"_ to Aquatos. It was quite something…

_--flash back--_

"_I'm sorry, okay!" Ratchet pleaded. Sasha was _very_ angry at Ratchet. He had just told her about his, err…"meeting" with Hydro Girl, and had now invoked Sasha's wrath. _

"_You went on a _DATE_ with her!" Sasha said angrily. _

"_We just went to dinner, and"_

"_In other words, a DATE!"_

_Ratchet sighed. He knew when he was beat. He looked up at Sasha, and said, "Okay, you're right…I went on a _date_ with her, and…I'm sorry." Sasha looked at him again, this time with less angry eyes. She could tell he was truly sorry. _

"_Okay, okay…apology accepted," she said, grinning. _

"_Thanks," Ratchet replied, relieved that Sasha had forgiven him. Suddenly, Sasha walked up to Ratchet, smiling._

'_I know what _she's_ up to,' he thought. He leaned his head towards hers, and she did the same. Their lips were about to touch, when suddenly. _

**SWOOSH!**

_The door flew open, and there stood non-other than the Galactic President. Everyone froze, even Ratchet, who still stood hunched over with his lips puckered up. His eyes grew wide from shock. _

"_WHAT IN THE NAME OF BLARG ARE YOU DOING WITH MY DAUGHTER!?" The President yelled, eyes glaring like daggers. _

_Ratchet immediately pulled away from Sasha, trying to think up an excuse. Unfortunately for Ratchet…none came. _

"_WHY YOU NO-GOOD, SNEAKY LITTLE…" The President then pulled out a Rynocerator and aimed at Ratchet. "THIS'LL TEACH YA' TO MESS WITH _MY_ DAUGHTER!" _

"_AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!" Ratchet screamed, running away in a puff of smoke. Sasha glared at her father. _

"_Now why did you do that?" she asked. _

"_What?" the President said, trying to look innocent as he hid the weapon behind his back. Sasha kept glaring. "Oh, come on, he's a Chauffer for Pete's sake; he's not good enough for you!"_

_Sasha was about to say something, but only shook her head and walked off._

_--End flashback--_

"Ratchet…RATCHET!"

"Who, what…oh, sorry," Ratchet said, realizing that Clank was talking to him.

"As I was saying," continued Clank, "I thought you might need some extra rest, due to your recent nightmares. When I informed Miss Sasha of this, she decided to invite you over to the Phoenix and talk later, so you could acquire that rest."

"Oh," Ratchet said, feeling guilty for yelling. "Sorry about that." Clank smiled, as if mentally saying to Ratchet 'It is okay'. He then added," C'mon let's head over to the Phoenix."

Clank nodded and followed Ratchet to his ship, where they blasted off into space.

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**Author's Note**: Well, there you go. One Chapter to my first story. I hope you enjoyed it. Please remember to review! Thank You!

**A/N edit: **Well, I didn't do _too_ much, other than changing a few typos, but alas,…an edit is an edit. I _did_ add the part of _how_ the President caught Ratchet and Sasha kissing. That counts…right? Any way, enjoy the re-make!.


	2. A Nefarious comback

**Author's Note**: Okay, here comes Ch.2 First, however, I must thank the following people:

Miss. Trippy: Thanks for being my first reviewer. I'll try to smooth it out and not rush it. Yep, that means…LONGER CHAPTERS! (Wahoo!) P.S. What do you mean when you say "Ohmegee"? I just don't understand what that means.

Under here: Whoops. I guess I got so excited about uploading my first fic. that I didn't see that. Glares at spell and grammar check on Microsoft I think I'll fix that up later.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Ratchet, Clank, Sasha, or any other characters beside my own characters (Such as the mystery cat-girl).

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_Recap:_

"_Oh," Ratchet said, feeling guilty for yelling. "Sorry about that." Clank smiled, as if mentally saying to Ratchet 'It is okay'. He then added," C'mon let's head over to the Phoenix." _

_Clank nodded and followed Ratchet to his ship, where they blasted off into space._

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Sasha was bored. Her dad had sent her to give a message to Ratchet, but Clank had said that he needed more sleep. So, she requested that she stay at the Phoenix and wait for Ratchet until he came there. Reluctantly, her dad said yes, and she had since sat down to wait. She used to be captain of the ship she was on, but her dad made her mayor of Metropolis when the previous mayor "_mysteriously_" disappeared.

'Whatever happened to that Mayor?' she thought. Anyway, there she was, sitting there in the bridge, bored out of her wits.

Suddenly, a ranger, after saluting, came and said," Captain, I have a message for you."

"At ease solider," Sasha replied," and I'm not Captain of this ship anymore. I'm the mayor of Metropolis."

"Eye, eye…captain." If the ranger had a mouth, he would have grinned, and if the robot could feel, Sasha would have slapped him…her…it…whatever! "Any who, Ratchet has arrived at the Phoenix!"

She perked up a little, but kept her formal posture...barely. She then said, "Good, you're dismissed." After the Ranger left, she quickly left the room and headed towards the moving platform that would take her to the main hallway, where Ratchet's ship would be parked.

'Why does this thing always seem slow,' Sasha thought as she waited on the platform. When she arrived at the main hallway, she could see on the other side that Ratchet was indeed approaching. As soon as he saw her, he switched from walking to running.

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Ratchet had just gotten out of the ship and onto the floor of the phoenix. He couldn't count the amount of times he had set foot on this ship. Nonetheless, he was glad to be back. Then he looked straight ahead. He saw, standing there in a purple uniform with brown strips and light brown fur, Sasha. Ratchet suddenly grew excited and started running towards her, Clank struggling to keep up.

When he arrived at Sasha's location, he cried," Sasha! Boy am I glad to see you!"

"Hey hotshot," she said, grinning. At this, Sasha gave him a hug. They stood there hugging for a few moments.

"Only a hug?" Ratchet asked, grinning, "What _has_ your dad said to you?" They both grinned.

"E-hem, I am still standing here." Clank said in a noisy voice. If they had gone bald suddenly, you could see just how much both of them were blushing. "Heheheheheh! It is okay. I know that you have each missed each other.

"Knaw, ya think?" Ratchet replied, grinning ear to ear. He then turned serious as he turned towards Sasha. "Clank said that you wanted to see me?"

"Yes," Sasha said, regaining her normal, military, posture, "My dad wanted me to tell you something important, and since he doesn't know your _Holo-Phone_ #... he…uh, decided to send me and well…"

Ratchet grinned, letting her know he wasn't falling for her little 'charade'.

"Alright, Alright!" she confessed, "I asked him to let me go and threatened that if he didn't I'd reveal a picture to the press of him wearing swim trunks."

Ratchet stared, partly because he couldn't believe she did that, and mainly because of the thought of the President _in_ swim trunks. "That's got to be scary," Ratchet said with a disturbed look on his face.

"You have _no_ idea," Sasha replied. "He has me look at him in them while he's modeling them at the store in the dressing room. That way, I can give him an 'opinion'. Anyways, I have some grave news."

'Uh, Oh,' thought Ratchet. 'Her dad never wants to see me anywhere near her, that's why she wanted to come so badly!'

She continued," Dr. Nefarious is back!"

When Ratchet heard this, he suddenly _wished_ she had said that he could never see her again…sort of…maybe…okay, okay, he'd rather see Sasha! But he was still shocked!

"I'm sure you're wondering how Nefarious survived that explosion," Sasha said. Ratchet nodded his head. "Apparently he ejected at the last minute, or had himself teleported."

"He had to have teleported," Ratchet replied. "We searched the entire planet before we left." Ratchet didn't like this one bit. If Nefarious survived, then why was it that he just now revealed himself again? Had he been plotting for revenge against Ratchet and co.? "Where is he now?" Ratchet asked.

"On a planet called Nifian 3," Sasha replied.

"Nifan… what?" Ratchet asked, a little bit confused.

"Nifan 3, a rather non-popularized planet," Sasha replied. "It is home to a species of Lombax called 'Silver striped Lombax'.

"Okay…" Ratchet said, taking this entire information in. "Are you going to be in charge of this?"

"Negative," Sasha said, sounding a little disappointed. "My father wants me nowhere _near_ any of this."

Ratchet replied to this with an, "Oh… well I guess we otta' get going. Will you do me a favor?" Sasha nodded and leaned closer to Ratchet's mouth. Ratchet whispered something in her ear.

She smiled and said, "Sure, but I better take care of the second thing right now." So, she leaned in and kissed Ratchet briefly, then turned around and said," Be careful Ratchet, Nefarious is no doubt more powerful than ever… your going to need all the luck you can get."

Ratchet smiled and said, "Don't worry, I won't get killed or anything… possibly chased and hunted, maybe a few tail burns here and there from lasers, but I won't get killed." He grinned after saying this, and, after saying goodbye, took the coordinates to the new planet. Then he and Clank turned around to head back to Ratchet's ship.

On the way there, Clank asked," Ratchet, what _did_ you ask Sasha to do?"

"I asked her to sneak a few calls to keep me updated. I'm not going with any plans that the president or the Q-force, which I'm sure he's going to regroup, have. Especially if Qwark will lead the team." Captain Qwark, the 'greatest' superhero who ever lived, had become quite the pest after Dread Zone. This didn't help Ratchet's stress, Qwark having annoyed him with his fan club, tails of his "hero" days, and (Worst of all) about him and Sasha not seeing each other. Ratchet had to threaten to stick a RYNO missile up Qwaurk's butt to make him leave Ratchet alone. Guess what? It worked!

Anyway, Clank nodded his head and glided into the ship, as Ratchet followed suit. Then he asked, "Then why did Sasha kiss you instead?"

Ratchet laughed, and then said," Remember that she said that she would 'I better take care of the second thing right now'?"

Clank nodded, but said, "I do not understand why you would have to ask Sasha for that as a favor?" Ratchet shook his head. After more explaining about flirting and being silly, they blasted off into space.

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Somewhere, deep in the Solana Galaxy, on the planet Nifan 3, a robot with red eyes and blue outer armor sat and plotted. Dr. Nefarious had established a base on the planet, and was currently working on a plan to get revenge on that nuisance of a Lombax, Ratchet. He had gotten off that asteroid he was on by teleporting into a ship that had come to clean up the wreckage left behind by a space station that had exploded. On board, while he "persuaded" the crew to give him the ship, he had found out that Ratchet had been the cause of the explosion.

"The little rodent has apparently become even stronger and more skilled with his weapons," The evil robot said while talking to himself. "This time, I won't give him the chance to ruin any of my plans _EVER _again! I WILL ANNILATE HIM! HE SHALL NOT ESCAPE ME THIS TIME! BWUHAHAHAHAHAHAH!..."

"Ehem," came the voice of another robot. As Nefarious stood on his desk, in a dramatic (But silly) pose, Lawrence walked in holding a basket with clothing in it (Including Nefarious' "Under Garments"). "Sorry to disturb you sir, but might I ask why you are standing on your desk?" Lawrence, a robotic butler to Nefarious, asked.

"Uh…Well…you see… it's just that…" Nefarious fumbled for words to explain his actions, but none came. "OH JUST NEVER MIND!" Nefarious blurted out, giving up on finding an excuse. "Do you have any news for me?"

"Yes, I do," Lawrence replied. "Your new robotic army is completed, your business associates have arrived, and we found you a cure."

Nefarious would have, if he had any, raised an eyebrow, but instead increased the size of one of his red eyes. "What do you mean a cure?" quizzed the maniacal doctor.

"Why a cure for your craziness and stupidity," replied Lawrence.

"Oh good. Bring it… HEY, WAIT A MINUTE! Grrrrrrah…LLLAAAAAAWWWWWRRENN-bzzzzzzt-…" Yelled Nefarious, but then froze as he went into his "radio drama mode"

"Oh lance, I have something to tell you," came a female voice from Nefarious' head.

"Yes Janice?" came a male voice.

"It's just that I'm…I'm…-zip- I'm a guy," The voice of what sounded like an unattractive male said.

"WHAT THE F-SLAP-… NNNNNCCCCEEEEEE!!!!!" Lawrence had slapped Nefarious before the radio show could continue.

"My, my, that was quite naughty," commented Lawrence. "Someone should cover up vulgar language like that on a radio show.

"VULGAR!" Nefarious cried, raising his fists. "YOU WANT VULGAR?! I'LL SHOW _YOU_ VULGAR!!! I'LL BLAST YOU INTO NEXT THURSDAY!!!!!" Nefarious yelled, infuriated at Lawrence. That robot had said one wisecrack too many. Suddenly a ball of energy appeared and he was about to obliterate Lawrence with it when a droid came in.

"Sir, your guest is here," announced a yellow test droid.

Nefarious stopped what he was doing and replied," Good, send them in." In came a shark-human hybrid. Behind him were two 10 ft. tall aliens in black cloaks. On his left arm was a yellow three-fingered arm with a blue ball in the middle of the palm. He wore a red tuxedo with cuffs on the sleeves. He, basically, looked like a rich, greedy, business tycoon.

"Normally," began Nefarious, forgetting all about Lawrence, "I wouldn't associate with a squishy, but seeing as you have had run-ins with the person I want eliminated… I will make an exception."

"I'm just glad to be alive again," said the alien. "I'm going to be very happy to get to crush the Lombax who originally destroyed me. Thanks to your cloning technology, however, I'm back…. and better than ever!" The shark-human looked up and shouted, "YOU HEAR THAT, LOMBAX, GLEEMAN VOX IS BACK, AND READY FOR THE NEXT SEASON!!!"

As he said this, Vox's mouth crept into an evil and maniacal smile. Then he and Nefarious both went, "_**BWUHAHAHAHAHAHAH-AHAHAHAHAHAH**_" As the evil conspirers laughed, both the cloaked men behind Vox couldn't help but snicker. Lawrence simply looked at them as if they were morons. The stage was set! Both Vox _and_ Nefarious were back and wanted one thing and one thing only…

…_REVENGE!!!_

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**Second Author's Note**: Well, there you go, another chapter added. Hope it was better than the first one. I have a favor to ask, however. I want to change my pen name (Due to wants of writing fan-fictions in other sections.) and I was wondering if anyone had a good idea for a name or if the following one is any good: "Anime Fan18". Please leave a reply to this question in your review. On that note, please, please, PLEASE review my story, even if you just read only first chapter. I'll continue the story, but it helps me to have some opinions. Currently, upon typing this, I have a measly two reviews! So PLEASE REVIEW! (Does big puppy eyes) Thank you for your support, those who have reviewed!

**A/N Edit:** Okay, chapter two, edited. Not much for me to do, other than changing typos, grammar, yadda yadda…but at least it's been edited. Oh, by the way, Nifan 3 is pronounced Neff-on-free, not Neff-ann-free. Just letting you know!


	3. The return of Vox!

**Author's Note**: Wahoo! Here comes Chapter 3! Many thanks to Miss Trippy for her support. My first reviewer **and** my most helpful (I've only had four but so what!). Anyways, onward with the chapter! First…

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Ratchet, Clank, Nefarious, Vox, or any other characters, planets, etc. All I own is the plot, the planet Nifan 3, and any original characters.

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_Recap:_

_As he said this, Vox's mouth crept into an evil and maniacal smile. Then he and Nefarious both went, "__**BWUHAHAHAHAHAHAH-AHAHAHAHAHAH**____" As the evil conspirers laughed, both the cloaked men behind Vox couldn't help but snicker. Lawrence simply looked at them like they were morons. The stage was set! Both Vox and Nefarious were back and wanted one thing and one thing only… _

…_REVENGE!!! _

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_--Ratchet's dream--_

_Ratchet was in an alleyway at Metropolis. It was dark, probably around midnight. As he walked down the alleyway, no weapons, he saw ahead a dark, robotic figure with glowing red eyes. As he got closer, he saw claws, blue armor, and a big dome head with metal gears inside. He stopped and snarled at the being of Dr. Nefarious._

"_So Ratchet," snarled Nefarious. "You think you have defeated me, eh? WRONG!!! BWUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!" Ratchet sneered and reached for his wrench, but realized he didn't have it with him. _

"_Hehehehehehe," continued Nefarious. "It seems that you have forgotten your weapons. Guess that means you won't be able to stop me from killing… HER!" Nefarious suddenly wiped out a Holo-vid screen showing Sasha tapped up and with a bomb under her. "SAY GOOD BYE, RATCHET!!!" With that, he pushed a button on a remote control, which detonated the bomb. _

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" screamed a TERRIFIED Ratchet. He set the ship into autopilot and decided to take a nap. Little did he know that it would turn into a nightmare!

"What is wrong, Ratchet?" Clank asked. "You were twisting inside your seat and murmuring Sasha's name."

Ratchet blushed underneath his fur. "Well…um… I-it was just a nightmare, okay?"

Clank nodded his head in agreement and said," Okay Ratchet, I understand."

Ratchet nodded back, satisfied. 'Just what was that dream all about?' Ratchet thought. 'Maybe I'm just spooked that Nefarious is back…'

As Ratchet was thinking, the computer in the ship's navigation system beeped, and then said, "You have arrived at your destination. Please switch to manual in order to land the ship." After pressing a button, Ratchet griped the flight stick and landed his ship.

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Elsewhere in space, another ship heads towards the desolate planet of Nifan 3. Inside the class-7 fighter sits a Silver striped Lombax, navigating her ship towards her home planet.

"I'm going to be glad to get home," she said. Then she reached down her white shirt to pull out a locket. She flipped it open and inside was herself, as a little girl, an adult female, her mom, a tall adult male, her dad, and another male, only shorter and chubbier. Her mom was wearing a red shirt and had earrings. Her dad had a white shirt with a pilot jacket on and an ear bent down at the tip on his right (probably from a fight). Her uncle had on a pair of overalls with a brown shirt underneath. They all had silver stripes, and white hair with silver highlights.

"Even though I didn't collect any new information, I'm still going home, no matter _what_ my 'King' says!" she continued. At that moment, her on-board computer beeped, telling her she was near the planet. Before the computer could speak, however, she flipped a switch that silenced the machine. "That thing gets annoying anyway." With one last push of the button, she landed her ship.

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"Did you hear something?" Ratchet asked. They had just landed, gotten their stuff together, and were about to head out. Ratchet was wearing his normal clothes: Greenish blue pants, a chest brace, gloves, and an Aviator's cap. They stopped though, when they heard a noise. Kind of like an engine. In fact, it was an engine! Ratchet looked up to see a ship descending upon the ground.

"WHAT THE!?" Ratchet pulled out his Shock Cannon, having gotten all his weapons from past adventures and putting them in his storage watch. He charged up the lethal weapon, and prepared to fire. Clank hopped on Ratchet's back and turned on his Clank shocker mod.

As the ship sat down, the Lombax and his robotic friend could see a few things about the ship. It was a star fighter, like Ratchet's, complete with a nuke launcher upgrade underneath, and it had a _Blargaian Red_ paint job. Unlike Ratchet's, it had a split nose and high lift wings. Inside the cockpit, they could see the figure of a woman inside. Then the ship's engine stopped as it landed with a hissing sound. The cockpit rose and out jumped a Cat-human hybrid with silver-ish hair and white stripes.

"So good to be… WHAT THE?!" the hybrid screamed mid-sentence. She saw in front of her a Lombax and robot holding a Shock Blaster. Not only did he have it charged up, it pointed straight at her. Suddenly she glared, and shouted, "Hey! Just _who_ do you think you are?" The woman was obviously caught off guard, and wasn't completely sure how to react to this sudden threat. So she went with the basic 'leave me alone or I'll hurt you and/or blow you up' response.

Ratchet stared at her for a moment, puzzled, then asked," I take it you _won't_ try to destroy, obliterate, annihilate, or just plain hurt us?"

"Hurt you? Only if you fire one of those electrical blasts at me," she replied.

Ratchet lowered his weapon then said, "Sorry, just being careful. Who are you anyway?"

The female grinned slyly. "Your not trying to hit on me, are you?" The Lombax went wide-eyed, and if you could pause time and shave his fur, he would have been glowing as red as an X-Mass light bulb. "Heheheheh. Just kidding there, fur-boy," Ratchet glared, "My name is Lilly," Lilly answered. "But just who are you?"

"The name's Ratchet," Ratchet answered, pointing his thumb at himself. "Would you happen to be a Silver Striped Lombax?"

"How, how did you know that?" Lilly asked, surprised that he knew such secretive info. "I'm impressed that you know that. Not very many people know about us."

"Well," Clank began, "we have been sent here from the Starship Phoenix. While we were briefed, we were told of your species."

"Oh, okay," Lilly replied. "Why were you sent here?"

"What!?" Ratchet asked, shocked. "You mean you don't know?" The Silver stripped Lombax nodded her head. "Have you ever heard of Dr. Nefarious?"

At the mere mention of his name, the teenage girl twisted her face in disgust. "Yeah, I've heard of him. Real jerk, too."

"Well… he's here on the planet, and he's up to something," Ratchet said. The female Silver striped Lombax stared in shock. "That's why we're here, to stop him," Ratchet continued, seriousness in his tone of voice.

"Yikes," Lilly said, shocked. "I have been gone from here WAY too long-hey, wait a minute? _You're_ going to stop him?" Ratchet nodded. "What chance do _you_ have?"

Ratchet looked offended at this remark. "Gee, I don't know…" he began, sarcasm layering his voice, "maybe being the person who STOPPED HIM IN THE FIRST PLACE?!" Lilly stared blankly. Ratchet look more annoyed. "You know, _Ratchet, Solana's hero!" _Nothing… "Surely they said _something_ about me in the news?" She still looked puzzled. "Okay…maybe something about Dreadzone. Yeah, they MUST have said something about that!" Lilly's expression didn't change.

"All I heard was a televised interview of the President saying 'Agent Clank' stopped Nefarious AND single handedly destroyed Dread Zone," Lilly told him, "whoever that is."

"……" Ratchet stared, angry.

"Ratchet, you okay?" Lilly asked.

"HE…SAID…WHAAAAAAATTTTTTT!!!!!" Ratchet screamed, losing his temper. "Why that no good, double crossing, snooping, irritating, _**SON OF A**_…"

"Ahem," Clank said noisily. "Allow me to explain, Miss Lilly. I play a character on a Holo-vid named "Secret Agent Clank". When Ratchet and I first heard of Nefarious, we discovered that the President thought "Agent Clank" was real. He also held low esteem for Ratchet, because he played my bumbling chauffer. Thus, he gave credit to me… but he wouldn't give any to Ratchet."

"Oh," Lilly said, now understanding what was going on. "So, you beat Nefarious?"

Ratchet stopped steaming long enough to realize he was asked a question, "Huh…? Yeah, that's me!" Ratchet nodded with a grin, putting his hands on his hips in a 'heroic' pose.

"I would have pictured you being taller," Lilly replied. Ratchet stopped grinning. He crossed his arms and shot her a glare.

"What?" she asked innocently. "I'm part Lombax, and I'm six inches taller than you!" Ratchet only rolled his eyes. "Well, better some help than no help. That be the case, ya better follow me… unless you know how to get to town."

"Wait, you're going to fight Nefarious?" Ratchet asked.

"Well, I came back for a different reason, but it _is_ my home planet! I might as well help defend it!" After saying this, she walked off. Ratchet just stared at Clank for a moment, and the two hurried after her.

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"Excellent, EXCELLENT, _EXCELENT_!" Nefarious shouted. He and Vox were standing inside a robot factory, something Nefarious decided to include in his new fortress, and Nefarious was pleased to see the production of a new army of robots. Dread Zone bots to be exact, their blueprints provided by none-other than Gleeman Vox himself. Parts were coming out of a hole in the wall on a conveyor belt. Then, different robotic arms would come and wield, pickup, paint, or attach different parts to construct the different robots. Finally, a large machine would plug itself into the head of each robot and download its AI into the machine. Then a giant crane would pick them up and place them in an area where the other completed robots were being held.

"All is going according to plan," Nefarious cackled to himself.

"May I ask just what your plan is, sir?" Lawrence asked. He was, of course, beside his master as Nefarious and Vox observed the progress of the production line. "I don't see how rebuilding the very robots Ratchet destroyed will help."

"Ah, but it will!" Vox said with assured, confidence in his voice. "_These_ Dread Zone bots have new armor upgrades! Not only that, but enhanced weaponry and artificial intelligence. And if that doesn't work, we also have Nefarious' robotic troops and scientific-weaponry."

"Ah, I see," Lawrence replied.

"But if _that_ doesn't stop him, we also have Bruno and Jeice," Vox added, shifting his head to indicate the cloaked men standing behind him. They'll take care of him."

"Bruno and Jeice, is that what you're names are?" Nefarious though aloud, somewhat 'stalking' the two cloaked men standing behind Vox.

"Yeah, why's ya' askin'?" Bruno asked in a reptilian, thuggish voice.

"What makes you think you're qualified for the job?" Nefarious pursued, almost sticking his face in his cloak. Suddenly, the reptilian pulled a Plasma storm from his storage watch, stood back, and put the face of the gun in Nefarious' face before he could even blink.

"Am I qualified now?" Bruno asked, a cocky tone coming from his voice. Nefarious chuckled.

"Not bad…for a squishy," Nefarious said, grinning. The man withdrew his weapon, satisfied that he made his point.

"SIR, SIR!" Suddenly, a test-droid came running in, screaming his head off. "RATCHET HAS LANDED ON THE SURFACE!"

"WHAT?!" Vox and Nefarious asked, only Vox added a "THE F#!?" to it.

"Yes, he's here!" The droid continued. "Scans show a furry life-form of 5ft. and a small 2ft. 6in. robot. However, they also show a 5ft. 6in. life-form with a feminine figure, her readings suggesting she's native of this planet."

"Hmmmmmm," pondered Nefarious. "Seems our little furry friend has acquired a tour-guide."

"Indeed," Vox said, also pondering. "Shall we give him a _warm_ welcome?"

Nefarious smirked a robotic smirk. "Sure… lets." Both villains grinned an evil grin.

"DROID!" Nefarious said, "Alert all available troops that the Lombax is here! Send ALL men to EXTERMINATE them!" The droid immediately replied by running towards a room on the far right and through a door. "This time, Lombax, you WILL NOT BEAT ME!"

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**Authors Note: **Whew! Finally done! Sorry it took so long! Had many things going on. Well, here it is. As of now, however, I will have changed my name to Anime Fan18 (I saw what you said Miss Trippy, so don't worry. My reason for the name is for it to sound cool, not to give away my name. Also, to make sure that there is at least a SMALL chance someone else doesn't have the name.), so for those of you who have a review from me, don't get confused. As always, PLEASE REVIEW!

**A/N EDIT:** Okay, third chapter, redone. Now before Miss Trippy goes nut-so on my sorry bumpkin keeping bold in some of the dialogue, I understand that I don't need to use it all the time…but there are times when a character reaches an anger level that to show the emphasize, I feel that I must use bold. There…'nuff said. NOW you can read the all new, fourth chapter!


	4. The fight

_**READ THIS FIRST!!! DO **__**NOT**__** READ THIS CHAPTER UNLESS YOU HAVE RE-READ MY FIRST THREE CHAPTERS**_I've made a few changes to the story (and added a few things) so you really need to read the first three chapters first. Okay? Okay? …I mean it…

Don't read yet…

…you better not be reading this…

…THAT'S IT! (RYNO's whoever just read this…unless, you're reading this because you've already re-read the first three chapters again. In that case, I give you a million dollars and a free car!)

**A/N**: So, you thought I was done, eh? Well…so did I. Nonetheless, I'm back and ready to continue this story.

**Disclaimer**: (Watches a SWAT team of lawyers descend from the ground) AH! I do not own Ratchet and Clank; I do not own Ratchet and Clank, I DO NOT OWN RATCHET AND CLAAAANK! (Lawyers groan and go away) (Sighs) Well, you heard me. I don't own 'em! Only my OC's

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_Recap:_

"_DROID!" Nefarious said, "Alert all available troops that the Lombax is here! Send ALL men to EXTERMINATE them!" The droid immediately replied by running towards a room on the far right and through a door. "This time, Lombax, you WILL NOT BEAT ME!"_

_----------------------------------_

Ratchet starred in amazement at the town and its citizens. Although not particularly impressive in terms of technology, there _were_ crowds of busy Silver striped Lombaxes roaming about. Short ones, tall ones, fat ones, skinny ones, rich and poor, all were walking around, busy with their own affairs. There were street markets, where vendors sold fruits, vegetables, and, surprisingly, weaponry. One-story houses made of metal could be seen in the distance, along with farmland. The path they were walking on was simply made of dirt, and some of the natives were carrying carts full of different goodies to sell.

"Whoa…" Ratchet said in awe. "I've…never seen so many Lombaxes in one place!"

Lilly looked behind her and smiled at Ratchet's starring. "You act like you rarely see _any_ other kind of Lombax."

"Um…" Ratchet started rubbing the back of his head. Lilly stopped, as did Clank, and they both looked at Ratchet. "Well, the truth is…until now, I've only seen one, before now."

"Huh? What about your parents?" Lilly asked.

Ratchet looked at the ground, sadness creeping its way into his mood.

"You know, Ratchet, I do not recall you ever telling me about your family," Clank said.

"That's because…I'm an orphan," Ratchet answered sadly. Both Lilly's and Clank's eyes were wide open. "You see, I was raised by mechanics when I was a child. They said that they found me in a basket in front of their house. My 'father' taught me everything I know. How to survive in Veldin, how to fix machinery…everything…" Ratchet sighed as he remembered what he said next, "But one day, when I was ten, they just…disappeared."

"Oh my gosh…that's terrible," Lilly said, shocked.

"How did you survive?" Clank asked.

"I told you," Ratchet began, "my fake parents taught me what I needed to know to survive on Veldin. It was almost as if they were setting me up for the day they left…"

**BOOM!**

A nearby explosion snapped Ratchet out of his thoughts. He quickly turned around to face where the explosion came from. The once docile crowd was now running around, screaming, trying to get away to safety. Ratchet looked at what was causing all the commotion…

…and wished he didn't. Standing there, a little different in that his armor was thicker, but still the same, was a DZ Striker from Dreadzone!

"No way…it's impossible," Ratchet gasped. A couple of Executioners followed the robot, reeking havoc on the small town.

Clank also was starring in shock. "Ratchet…is that a-"

"Yes Clank," Ratchet answered, "that's a Dreadzone robot." The DZ striker took notice of Ratchet right about this time. "Clank, get on my back, NOW!" Clank hopped on Ratchet's back as he equipped his Dual Vipers.

Lilly, although confused, pulled out a Plasma Coil from her storage cube around her waist, and equipped an Agents of Dread glove.

Ratchet ran up to the robot, showering the DZ Striker with a storm of Dual Viper bullets. However, the robot did something unexpected… Instead of turning into a pile of Ash, it ran up towards Ratchet, jumped over said Lombax, and landed behind him with his laser pistol equipped.

"What the, I don't remember them being able to do that!" Ratchet exclaimed. The robot started strafing, shooting several shots from his gun. Ratchet jumped, flipped, and strafed around several shots. Suddenly, the Executioner came, grabbed Ratchet, and pulled him into a bear hug. (Ew?)

As Ratchet struggled, the DZ striker hovered towards Ratchet. He then did another unexpected thing; missile launchers opened up from plates on his chest.

**BOOOOOM!**

The DZ Striker exploded, having met the blast from Lilly's Plasma Coil. The executioner grabbed his wrench with his free hand and started shooting plasma blasts at Lilly. Lilly gracefully flipped and dodged all of the blasts, not getting a single scratch. When suddenly...

**WHACK!** …the other Executioner ran up and smacked Lilly in mid air with the broad side of its wrench.

"Ouch…" Lilly groaned, her face in the dirt. She looked up and saw that both Executioners were standing above Lilly, holding their wrenches in the air. They were about to bring their wrenches down on Lilly. Lilly waited for her imminent doom.

**ZAAAAAAAAAAAAP!**

Lilly looked up and saw that Ratchet had equipped his Telsa Barrier, which caused the Executioner holding him to be zapped and accidentally swing his wrench into his comrade. The other Executioner now clutched its chest, the other one's wrench wedged in. It stepped back a few more steps, sparked, then simply fell to the ground.

The other one whipped around to face the Lombaxes…

…only to meet Ratchet's Shock Cannon Blast.

The robot fell, unmoving and decapitated. Ratchet was sure he had destroyed the robot, and was about to walk away. Then:

"OUCH!" Ratchet fell, clutching his now bleeding leg. Nanotech immediately healed it, but it still felt sore. Ratchet turned around and saw the Executioner, with an 'eye' in the center of his chest, holding his still glowing wrench. "No way…" Ratchet muttered as he stood up. He looked to his side and saw the other one also standing up! They both slowly started walking towards Ratchet.

"Ratchet, my sensors tell me that these Dreadzone bots are not the same as those we fought before," Clank chirped from Ratchet's back.

"You think!?" Ratchet spat. "How are they _still_ able to fight?"

"My sensors indicate that these machines not only have back up power generators, and backup computer processors, but an extra optical sensor in the chest for when the robot is decapitated."

"You mean, even if I damage them, they can still keep going?" Ratchet asked.

"I'm afraid so," Clank said gloomily. Ratchet watched them walking towards Ratchet, wrenches at the ready. Then, the sides of their chests opened and revealed missile launchers. Plasma cannons then popped out of their arms and shoulders.

Ratchet's ears drooped. "Now that's just not fair!" The robots were about to unleash total destruction on Ratchet, when suddenly…

"HIYA!" The robots turned just in time to be blasted by Lilly's Splitter rifle. I pierced both robots through the chest, making the headless one now blind, and made them stumble back.

Ratchet took this moment to equip both his Rynocerator AND his Supernova in both of his hands. He then ran up, stopped a few feet in front of them, and then…

**FLAAAAAAAAAAAAASH! VROOOOOOOOOOOOM!**

The Rynocerator turned the first into ash, and the second one blew him to bits with an energy blast from above. Ratchet put away both weapons, satisfied that they were NOT coming back.

"WHAT THE HECK _WERE_ THOSE THINGS!?" Lilly screeched after putting away her weapons.

"Dreadzone bots," Ratchet answered. Clank hopped off Ratchet's back and turned to face Lilly. "They're the robots we had to fight when me and Clank-"

"Clank and I," Clank corrected.

Ratchet glared. "Okay, CLANK AND I were captured by Gleeman Vox."

"Oh…I didn't know," Lilly responded. "Dang, for you to take out robots like that, in swarms-"

"That is the point," Clank interrupted, "those _were not_ the robots we fought. They have some how changed."

"Yeah, they weren't _nearly_ that tough before!" Ratchet exclaimed. "My question is; how did Nefarious get the blueprints for them?" Suddenly, everyone heard a rumbling sound. They all turned their attention towards the hills…only to see a twenty Executioners, thirty DZ Strikers, some robot swarmers, and forty robot zombies all heading towards the Lombaxes. If that weren't bad enough, several drop ships, filled with both Dreadzone bots AND Nefarious' robotic troopers, were following from the air. And the piece de' resistance…one HUNDRED tanks equipped with plasma cannons followed behind the ground troops.

Both Lilly's and Ratchet's ears dropped. "You have GOT to be kidding me!" they exclaimed in unison. Clank sighed and hopped back on Ratchet's back.

Several Executioners ran up, shooting missiles from their opened chest while swinging their wrenches. Ratchet and Lilly ran opposite directions, Ratchet equipping his Megaturret Glove, and Lilly equipping her Agents of Dread Glove. Ratchet ran around, dropping off Megaturrets along the way. As soon as they sprouted up, they began shooting their payload at the robots.

Lilly threw out two Agent containers, which immediately sprouted into the loveable robotic machines of death we all know and love! The air-born ones immediately began shooting lasers at the incoming DZ Strikers and Troopers. Amazingly, several of them managed to evade the blasts. The ground ones, however, were posing a bigger problem for the death machines. They were going Kamikaze, trying to touch members of the robot swarm in order to send them into a nuclear blast of doom.

The DZ Strikers, in order to escape the Agents of Dread on the ground, hovered into the air and used their guns to activate their bomb and make them blow up out of range. The Troopers weren't so lucky. Since their AI wasn't upgraded like the Dreadzone bots, they suffered the blasts of the explosion happy mini robots.

--------------------------------------

Meanwhile, Ratchet had his Silencer equipped, and was blasting away at an Executioner and Trooper that were trying to blow him to bits. The Executioner had his arm and both shoulder plasma cannons equipped, and was blasting away at the Lombax. Ratchet dodged every shot, but the Executioner did likewise with his.

"Alright, this is getting ridiculous!" Ratchet cried, irritated. Suddenly, five more Executioners touched down and started shooting rockets from their chest, while another two took their wrenches and started running towards Ratchet. Ratchet dodged the missiles, but one of the Executioners struck him in the ankle with one of the robot's wrench swings. Ratchet fell belly first, but quickly rolled out of the way of a wrench swing aimed right at his head. He quickly jumped up, equipped his Shock Cannon, and blasted the giant metallic brute right in the chest. When he landed, he equipped both his Nitro Erupter and B11 Vaporizer in both of his hands. He then ran up, jumped behind the several Executioners (and Trooper) and fired both bombs at the horde.

**BOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOM!**

Ratchet couldn't help but smile as he saw robot parts fly everywhere. However, when the smoke cleared…his expression changed from happy to shock. Only the Trooper had exploded, and the seven Executioners were STILL working. A lot of their armor was missing, but nonetheless, they worked.

"I don't know WHO built these things…but we could sure use him…her…whoever or whatever he/she is," Ratchet said, kind of stumbling on hid words at the end. They were about to attack, when:

**BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOOOOOOOOOM!**

All seven Executioners exploded suddenly. Ratchet was at first confused…until he noticed the Megaturrets that had teleported behind the Executioners.

"Wow…perfect timing," Ratchet said, amused how the seemingly invincible robots were dismantled by a few gunshots from the smallest, portable turrets in the galaxy.

"I need some help over here!" Lilly cried as she was using an N90 Hurricane to try to batter off some DZ Strikers and a few Executioners. Ratchet started to run to help, when a plasma blast nearly annihilated the Lombax.

"WHOA!" Ratchet cried as he screeched to a halt. He turned his head to see that the tanks had finally caught up with the rest of the party. "Oh great…more fun," Ratchet groaned. He took out his Stalker Mine launcher and began to fire the lethal heat seeking orbs of death. They immediately locked onto the enemy machines, and started floating towards the tanks rapidly, beeping along the way.

**BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOOOOM!**

The mines hitting their target didn't cause the explosions; a DZ Striker used its blaster to set off one of the mines, which in turn set off the rest of them.

"UGH! DO THESE THIGNS _EVER_ GIVE UP!?" Ratchet cried as he threw his hands up in the air. He took out his Rift Inducer, and fire several shots to get rid of any other ground troops. Thankfully, they all disappeared in the vortex immediately.

"Why didn't I think of that earlier?" Ratchet asked himself. He shrugged, pulled out his Shock Blaster, and ran up to take care of the tanks. The tanks immediately fired on the approaching Lombax, releasing their orange plasma bolts of death. Ratchet dodged, all the while charging up his Shock Cannon. When it started emitting white energy out of the barrel, Ratchet made sure that he was in the way of multiple tanks. Sure enough, three more tanks came towards the Lombax. Ratchet grinned.

**BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!**

Ratchet released the trigger, spun around while shooting, and decimated the three tanks.

"Finally, that _must _be all of the-" Ratchet turned around and saw twenty of the robot zombies, and three more Executioners standing behind him. In addition, a drop ship was readying its missile launcher as it dropped off more robotic Troops.

"This is _really_ ridiculous…" Ratchet groaned.

-------------------------------------------

Lilly wasn't having much luck neither. The rest of the zombie horde, and some extra ones that had come, were all attacking her at once. She had her Nitro Erupter equipped, and was shooting bomb after bomb to drive back the ever-increasing amount of zombies.

"Man, this is getting old!" she cried, blasting six or seven with a single shot. She was slowly backing up further…further…and further. Until…

CLICK ,CLICK, CLICK.

"Uh oh…" she said, starring at her ammo less weapon. The zombies noticed, and started closing in on her. "Ah, oh no, I'm out of ammo! Whatever shall I do?" she fell to the ground, and covered her head with her arms. The robots were right on top of her now. One drew up its claw, about to strike her.

"SYC!" she pulled out her Nitro Erupter, which now had ammo thanks to her Gadgetron PDA, and blew the rest of the zombie horde surrounding her to pieces.

"That takes care of that," she said, dusting her hands off. She turned around…

CLUNK! …and bumped right into an Executioner.

"Ouch", she said, rubbing her head. The Executioner picked her up, and held her at eye level. "Don't suppose you're friendly…are ya'?" The robot opened up its missile launchers, shoulder cannons, and arm cannon on his free arm, and held them towards Lilly.

"Yeah…didn't think so," Lilly said, her ears dropping.

---------------------------------

Ratchet was shooting his Rift Inducer like a freaking lunatic, letting the vortex suck in all of the robots so he wouldn't have to spend time blasting at their tough armor. Yet, more seemed to keep appearing out of nowhere, and Ratchet continued his one-man war against the hostile robots. Unfortunately for him…

CLICK, CLICK, CLICK. "Uh oh…" Ratchet said, starring at his ammo less weapon. He improvised, and pulled out his B-11 Vaporizer, along with his own Agents of Dread glove. He shot out the mini robots, which immediately started blasting all the Dreadzone bots. He then ran up, leading the robots in swarms. Just when they were about to catch him, he's flip over them and fire his B-11 Vaporizer. The blast either destroyed, or severely damaged the group. This worked a few times, until they realized what the Lombax was doing. Therefore, they went long range, shooting blasts from their wrenches or shooting missiles from their chest.

"I am SO SICK OF THIS!" Ratchet cried, irritated. He didn't notice the zombie creeping up behind him, slowly approaching the Lombax. Suddenly, the robot zombie came up behind Ratchet and grabbed his tail, hoisting him up in the air.

Ratchet was caught off guard, and just hung there for a moment; watching the upside down robots approaching him. Finally, he just snapped.

"SON OF A QWARK, _THAT'S IT_!!!" Ratchet cried, furious. He kicked the robot hard in the chest, causing him to let go of Ratchet. When he landed, he pulled out his Supernova. "NO MORE MR, NICE LOMBAX! I'M GOING TO BLOW YOU INTO A MILLION PIECES!!!" Ratchet pointed his gun, pulled the trigger several times, and…

_**BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!**_

Ratchet watched as neon colored lasers of death rained from the heavens and took out almost _all_ of the robots advancing towards Ratchet and Lilly. Then, he switched out his Supernova for his Rynocerator. He pulled the trigger, and…

**FLAAAAAASH! **

_**BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!**_

Words could not describe how the explosion looked as hundreds of robots, tanks, and drop ships alike all simultaneously blew into tiny bits of shrapnel. A few DZ strikers and one lone Executioner (Not counting the one Lilly was handling) were left. They all looked towards Ratchet, processing what had just happened.

Ratchet stood there, huffing and puffing after his fit of rage. When he saw how scared the robots were, he grinned.

"Next?" Ratchet grinned maniacally, raising his weapon in preparation. The robots calculated their odds, starred at each other, then did the smartest thing possible…

…they ran.

Ratchet smirked as he watched the robots run away, screaming like girls. (How is that?) Just then, a robot's arm flew past Ratchet's head. He looked to his left and saw Lilly, holding a Decimater in her hands. The robot that was attacking now took the form of a neat, pile of ash.

"Well…_that_ went well," Lilly said sarcastically as she dusted herself off.

"Yeah…splendid," Ratchet griped as he put away his weapon. "How did Nefarious build those things!?"

"I don't know," Lilly said, "I was hoping you could tell me Mr. 'Hero'!" Ratchet glared at her for a moment. He _was NOT _in a good mood. "Well, that's what you said Mr. "Big shot'," Lilly continued as she put up her hands in mock pose. "'Oh don't you worry, _I'LL_ take care of the robots! I'LL defeat Nefarious like I did before, I'LL'…"

Ratchet shot her a deadly glance, and started to reach for his Rynocerator again…

"Of course, I mean that in the best of ways!" Lilly said hastily as she put her arms up in submission, rather than mock. She also sweat dropped.

Ratchet put away his weapon for good this time, calming down a bit. Clank hopped off Ratchet's back again, and started scanning the area.

"It appears that all robotic life forms have vacated the perimeter," Clank spoke in a simple tone.

Ratchet smiled slyly, thinking of something funny. He said, "Yeah, they couldn't stand up to the… 'Flash…of…DEATH'! Hahahaha!"

WHACK!

"YEOW," Ratchet cried, rubbing his head. Lilly lowered her fist as Ratchet asked, "What'd you do _that_ for!?"

Lilly glared. "For making such a crude joke, that's why!"

Ratchet looked a little annoyed, as he grumbled, "_Little miss no fun…_"

"What did you say?" Lilly said menacingly, cracking her knuckles.

"Oh…nothing," Ratchet said innocently, putting his hands behind his back. Lilly glared daggers at the heroic Lombax. When they turned around, they saw all the townsfolk gathered behind them. Ratchet and Lilly starred.

"…uh…hi?"

"HOOOOOOOOOORAY!!!" the citizens cried. Hundreds of people than ran up to hoist Ratchet, Clank, and Lilly into the air, all the while cheering for their new found heroes.

"I could get used to this," Ratchet said with a smirk.

"I-I c-can n-not m-move," Clank vibrated, bouncing up and down. Lilly and Ratchet looked at the little robot and couldn't help but laugh a little. The parade continued a little longer until…

"HALT! DROP THEM!" Suddenly, the crowd dispersed, causing the two Lombaxes, and robot, to fall on their butts. An "ouch" or two later, the trio could see who it was that caused the crowd to disappear so quickly.

He was, as everyone else was, a Silver Striped Lombax. His armor looked like a grey pair of Infernox armor; minus the helmet. He was tall, around 6 ft. 5 I'd say, and carried a laser sword in his belt. He was also muscled up…very, very, VERY muscled up.

He was riding what would appear to be the cross of a horse, and a tiger. It has the horse body, but it had thick fur, stripes, and the tiger's head and tail. In addition, its leg muscles were much thicker than an actual horses'. It was about 7 ft, tall on all fours, and had big, glaring, yellow eyes. The rider was sitting on a brown saddle, which had bags attached to it as well.

"Uh…may we help you?" Ratchet asked.

The horseman glared at the tiny Lombax. "You better watch your mouth…shrimp!"

That was it; Ratchet had enough. "WHAT did you just call me?" he demanded.

"A 'shrimp', shrimp!" the horseman sneered. "I don't like you, got that? I don't like outsiders coming here, 'kay? Especially smart aleck, brown striped, short little shrimps-" He was interrupted by Ratchet shoving his Rynocerator AND his Supernova right in his face.

Ratchet glared at him…badly. "Call me 'shrimp' again and see what happens. One of my worst enemies has gathered an army of robots, whose blueprints are from _another_ enemy who captured, tortured, and trash talked me. He sent these robots to TRY AND KILL ME!!! Therefore…I'm _really_ not in a good mood pal! Are we clear?"

"-gulp-crystal," he said weakly. Ratchet lowered his weapons and placed them back in his storage watch. The horseman regained his senses, and continued, "The King of this land has declared that you and your friends meet him at the palace…immediately."

Lilly looked worried. "T-the King? _He_ wants _us…_there…now?"

"Yes, he does," the nobleman answered. "He has requested I escort you there myself. So, if you would please follow me, I shall take you to him."

Ratchet merely sighed. He followed the 'knight', who began riding towards the palace mentioned earlier. Lilly and Clank merely followed.

All the gears in Clank's head were tuning so quickly. He wandered how Nefarious escaped, why Miss Lilly was so nervous about meeting the King, and how did Nefarious reconstruct the Dreadzone bots? The only man who knew how they were made was Gleeman Vox himself; and he was dead…

…or was he?

This question made Clank stop for a moment and think. Ratchet continued on a few more feet before he noticed his robot buddy lagging behind.

"Clank, are you coming?" Ratchet called.

Clank snapped out of it, and called, "Yes, I am coming. I just have a lot going through my mind…that is all,"

"You and me both," Ratchet said. With that said, Clank sprinted to catch up with the rest of the gang as they headed to the palace of the Great King of Nifan 3…

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**A/N:** Wow, I believe that is my longest chapter ever! Well, I hoped you enjoyed it. I don't know how often I'll be able to update. I'm almost literally having to battle for the computer (My mom has discovered fan fics about one of the books she reads, and she has become A-DIC-TED!!!) Any way, don't forget to read and review!

…what?

…why are you still reading…?

(remembers) Oh yeah, I forgot! (I give free car and one million dollars to whoever re-read my first three chapters before reading this one) There, all better! Now, goodbye!


	5. A royal pain in the butt

**A/N**: Time for fifth chapter!

**Disclaimer**: I do not own R-

Lawyer: Excuse me, are you Anime Fan18.0?

(Blink, blink) Yes, I am.

Lawyer: You are being sued for not disclaiming owning Ratchet and Clank.

Oh really…even though I've said it for four chapters now?

Lawyer: (Looks nervous) Y-you can't prove that!

Don't have to! (Blows lawyer up)

Lawyer (faintly): I'll be baaaaaaaack…

This is the part where I say: I don't own Ratchet and Clank! HA, take THAT Lawyer!!!

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_Clank snapped out of it, and called, "Yes, I am coming. I just have a lot going through my mind…that is all," _

"_You and me both," Ratchet said. With that said, Clank sprinted to catch up with the rest of the gang as they headed to the palace of the Great King of Nifan 3…_

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"SAY WHAT!?" Nefarious screeched. The three remaining robots, two DZ Strikers and an Executioner, had reported back, telling Nefarious of how the attack was a failure.

"They were simply too strong," The Executioner said. (Yes, they can talk! The one who captured Ratchet first _asked_ him if he was Ratchet) Nefarious' head was sparking; he was furious!

"You're dismissed!" he spat. The Executioner turned around and started to walk off…

**BOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!**

…when Nefarious blew him up with a purple blast from his hand. The other two were about to run, but Nefarious quickly caught them and tore off their heads. The two robotic bodies dropped to the floor, and Nefarious threw the heads elsewhere.

"Should I call upon Master Vox, sir?" Lawrence, who had stood by watching, asked.

"Oh yes…" Nefarious said darkly. "I'M GOING TO CHEW HIM OUT!"

"Temper, temper," Lawrence reminded him, "I wouldn't have to take away Mr. Tinkles, now would I?"

Nefarious looked worried at the thought of Lawrence hiding his teddy bear. He then shot a glare. "You wouldn't dare!"

"Oh really?" Lawrence asked. He then pulled out a phone and said, "Do it" into it.

"Do what?" Nefarious asked. Suddenly:

**BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!**

Nefarious heard an explosion, and then realized what happened. "AHHHHHH!!! NO, YOU BLEW UP MR. TINKLES!!! _MR. TIIIIIIIIINKLEEEEEEEEEES_!!!" Nefarious fell to the ground sobbing. "He was –sob-…the BEST teddy bear-sob-…I ever haaaaad! Wahahaaaaaaaa…"

Lawrence did something he rarely did; smile. "Sir, I have a question for you,"

Nefarious looked up at him, oil 'tears' falling down his face. "What is it?" he asked. "Can't you see I'm morning the loss of my Teddy Bear?"

"My question is…how could you fall for that?"

"How could I fall for what-?" Nefarious froze, realizing he had just been duped. The explosion was just a recording! "GRRRRRRRRRRRRR, _**LAAAAAAAAAWREEEEEEE**__-_Bzzzzzzzzzzzzt-"

Nefarious froze as he went, again, into radio drama mode.

" 'Why…why have you been lying to me?' " Lance asked 'Janice.'

" 'Because,' " came the voice of the unattractive male named 'Janice', " 'I have ALWAYS loved you, but knew you weren't gay! But come on, let's make out!' –Zip-"

"'Hey, what are you doing…?'" Lance asked. A few more seconds of unzipping, and, "'AAAAAH! YOU'RE PULLING DOWN YOUR PANTS! YOU SICK, MOTHER FU'-WHACK-bzzzzzzzzzzzzzt-_**EEEEEEEEEEEEEEENCE**_!!!"

Lawrence had "saved the day" again, slapping Nefarious just in time. "Oh, now come on…really! Such horrible language should not be allowed on those kinds of shows!"

Nefarious was thinking of strangling the poor butler…but decided not to. No, he would find a sneaky way to get back at him later…

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Ratchet, Clank, and Lilly were walking on yet another stone path. This time, the nobleman from earlier was leading them. He placed a few feet between himself and the group (Probably to escape the wrath of Ratchet) allowing a little privacy as they talked.

"Hey Lilly, who is the King?" Ratchet asked. Lilly looked at him weirdly. "Doesn't he have a name?" Ratchet pursued.

Lilly looked down, but said, "He makes everyone call him 'The Great One,'" she answered. Ratchet looked somewhat puzzled. Clank, however, was absorbing everything. Her body language, her tone of voice, her reaction to the King's summoning of them, she knew _something_ about this man that made her afraid.

"Pardon me, Miss Lilly," Clank asked, "is there something you wish to tell us about this man?"

Lilly looked at the robot. She then looked at the nobleman. It didn't look like he could hear them, but she knew better. "No…" she answered.

Clank looked at the nobleman. He could tell she didn't wish to speak of the king in front of him. He looked back at Ratchet, who had a 'how the heck should I know what's going on' look on his face.

Ratchet was getting bored. "How much longer until we get to this guy's castle?"

The nobleman turned his head and shot Ratchet a dirty look. "You will refer to him as either 'The King' or 'The Great One'!"

Ratchet glared back, and then added, "Why don't we just teleport?"

"Because," the nobleman answered, "the King of this world has requested that the technology of all _peasants_ be kept to a minimal."

Ratchet and Clank both arched an eyebrow. (Or in Clank's case, narrowed an eye)

"'Peasants'?" Clank asked. "Don't you mean 'citizens'?"

"No, I mean 'peasants'," he answered. "Only the King is allowed to have technology current to the galaxy's time! When we get to the palace, you will find plenty of modern devices."

'Talk about 'living in the stone age'!' Ratchet thought.

"Excuse me sir," Clank pursued, "but wouldn't you, obviously a nobleman, have access to _some_ technology?"

"Yes, but I am not allowed to bring it to the villages," the nobleman answered.

Ratchet was growing _very_ impatient. So far, his 'majesty' didn't sound like such a swell guy. He then said, "Well, maybe I could Charge Boot us there; I have my storage watch-"

"Oh, another thing," the nobleman stopped his tiger-horse hybrid so he could face them, "…I'll be needing your storage watch."

"...excuse me?" he asked.

"And," he turned to Lilly, "I'll need yours as well."

"I don't think so, pal!" Ratchet said, his eyes narrowing. "There is no way, and I mean _NO WAY_ I'm trusting you with all of my weapons, gadgets, and personal items!"

"Would that happen to include your HVD; Blarg's gone wi-" Ratchet hastily covered Clank's mouth before he could finish revealing his other "personal" items. Lilly and the nobleman both exchanged strange looks, and then shrugged.

"As I was saying," Ratchet glared once more at Clank, letting him know to shut up, "you're not taking my storage watch."

"Well then, you can't see the king," the Nobleman argued.

"Don't want to," Ratchet countered.

"Then I'll _arrest_ you!" countered the nobleman.

"I'm Captain of the Starship Phoenix, which is under command of the President of the _Galaxy_…I think I out-rank you."

"Well, then I'll heighten your taxes!"

"Don't live here."

"I'll…attack your family!"

"Don't have any."

"I'll…I'll…beat you up!"

Ratchet slapped his head. "I have some of the most powerful weapons of Mass Destruction in _ANY_ galaxy, all which could vaporize you in one shot. _WHAT_ in the name of Blarg makes you think you have _any chance WHATSOEVER_ of beating me?" Ratchet smiled, knowing he had beaten the nobleman in their "fight".

The nobleman glared. He couldn't think of anything that could possibly make Ratchet give him his storage watch.

"Fine," the nobleman said in defeat, "but pull one firearm out and I'll arrest you in a heartbeat!" Ratchet rolled his eyes. "But as for the girl…" he held out his arm towards her.

She sighed, and removed the small cube from her belt. Ratchet starred in shock as she handed over her _entire_ arsenal to the horseman.

"Lilly…why are you giving him your weapons!?" Ratchet cried.

"It's…personal," she said. The nobleman smirked, and swiped the cube in a heartbeat.

He pushed a button, which made a small little screen pop out. He gazed at the pictures of all her weaponry, a small grin on his face. "The king will be happy to add this to his collection," he said with a sinister grin.

"Sir that is stealing!" Clank cried, shocked.

"Let it go Clank," Lilly said, kneeling so she could be on Clank's eye level. "He's not being serious." She then turned and glared at the nobleman. "At least…he better _not_ be!"

He shrugged. "Maybe…maybe not; depends on my mood."

Ratchet was giving him the nastiest glare possible. (If looks could kill…) "If you're done, I'd like to go to the palace now and get this over with!"

"We're here," he said. Ratchet, Clank, and Lilly starred around with blank looks on their faces. "I may have said _I_ can't carry around technology, but the King has allowed hidden teleportation pads hidden along this path." He then jumped down from his animal and walked towards a tree on the side of the path. He then came to the tree, pushed a hidden button on it, and stood back as the tree disappeared; and a teleportation pad appeared by his feet.

The animal went in first, after a quick coaxing from its rider. "Ladies first," he said with a sly grin as Lilly went in afterwards. Then Ratchet, Clank, and finally the nobleman himself; they all disappeared in a flash of green light. A few moments later, the teleportation pad disappeared and it went back to looking like a regular old tree.

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"Whoa…" Ratchet said in awe. He had just teleported, and now stood in the grand hall of the palace. It was big…very, very; big…truly, the word "big" was an insult to this place! It was painted white, with a golden ceiling. Highly valuable works of art; including statues, paintings, and busts of famous galactic pioneers (including Lobo the test squirrel from Megacorp) lined the walls of the room. A dark red carpet, cut to resemble a path, laid on the floor with a gold trim. The tile on the floor was marble which, literally, had enough wax that one could see their reflection! Several dark red drapes hung from the ceiling, imprinted with either crowns or "T-G-O" on them. The carpet led up to a series of steps, which at the top was a platform. On said platform, was non-other then the throne of the King of Nifan3.

"Where's his 'majesty'," Lilly asked as Ratchet continued to marvel the beauty of the palace.

The nobleman glared at her for the sarcasm in her voice. He was about to speak, when suddenly:

"You need not answer that," a voice said. The nobleman immediately whipped his head around and kneeled. Lilly, although obviously reluctant, kneeled. Clank too caught on, and bowed down. Ratchet, on the other hand, stood there like an idiot.

"Um…what's with all the kneeling?" The nobleman reached up an arm and dragged down the absent-minded Lombax onto his knees.

"_Bow you moron!_" he hissed. Ratchet shot a glare, but lowered his head. He quickly stood up and got a good look at this "king".

He was tall, 6ft. 5", and slightly muscular. His armor was skintight, had shoulder pads, and had a cape tied to it with two golden medallions. He wore black latex underneath and wore white gloves and boots. His chest armor was black, except with a red crown on his right chest, and the shoulders were red. (If you've ever seen Dragon Ball Z, his armor looks like the Sayain armor Vegeta first wore; except for the color changes and cape.)

His eyes were a dark yellow, and his hair was, of course, white; with silver highlights. His hair was distinctively spiky, and he had a huge scar run from under his eye. His tail flicked casually, and his ears stood perked and alert.

"You're majesty," the nobleman said, bowing his head, "I have brought the outsiders, as you commanded."

"Rise Sir Shirley," the King said. He stopped when he heard laughing. He looked at Ratchet, who was on the floor crying!

"S-SHILEY! AHAHAHAHAHHAHAHA!!!" Ratchet howled. I swear the poor nobleman glowed like a red light bulb. "So, all this time the 'big, scary, tough guy guard' is named 'Shirley'? _That_ is too funny-"

Ratchet stopped when a laser sword had appeared under his throat. "You'd be _very_ wise…to not make fun of my name…" Shirley hissed. He then dropped the weapon and turned off the purple beam.

"Ahem!" Everyone stopped and looked at the King. "Now, bring me their weapons, Shirley!" The King barked. Shirley approached the King and dropped Lilly's 'weapon cube' in his gloved hand. He looked down, annoyed.

"I-is there a problem, your majesty?" Shirley asked.

"Yes, there is…I see _two_ Lombaxes, and you bring me _one_ weapon container," his 'majesty' said.

"The outsider r-refused to surrender his weapons," Shirley replied. The King walked past Shirley and towards Ratchet. He got so close to his face that Ratchet could smell his breath.

"I recognize you…" he said with a smirk. "You're Ratchet, Solana's 'hero'." He stood back for a moment, grinning. Ratchet was a _little_ confused.

He then turned towards Lilly, and grinned even more. "Oh, I _definitely_ recognize you!" the King hissed. Lilly backed away a little bit, her instinct telling her to do so. He walked away for a moment, and then turned around. "Do you know _why_ I summoned you?" he asked the trio.

"Uh…honestly, no," Ratchet replied.

"Well, you see, it is illegal for _peasants_ to carry around technology more advanced than a microwave-oven. Your display of firepower against Nefarious' troops more than alerted my surveillance scanners to your use of them."

"But sir," Clank pursued, "if it had not been for Ratchet and Lilly, all of the civilians would have been wiped out!"

"_But_ had you not come, Nefarious would have never sent those troops!" the King countered.

"But we came here to _get rid _of Nefarious!" Ratchet cried.

"He is not a problem, as long as he leaves me alone!" the King said carefree.

"But they're _your people!"_ Lilly cried, infuriated. She had enough of hiding her true emotions. "You simply don't CARE do you!? All of us, including me, are nothing but play things to you!"

The King starred, furious at her outburst.

She continued, on her knees and tears running down her face. "What kind of King are you? You should _protect us_ and help us prosper; not cut us down and treat us like we're nothing!"

"Silence…" the King said in quiet anger.

"All of the women and children you've tortured," Lilly cried.

"Silence…!" the King said a little more loudly.

"All of the rape and murder you've let pass by, and what you've done to my family-"

"_SIIIIIIIILEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEENCE_!!!" he cried, furious! "I SHOULD HAVE YOU LOCKED IN THE DUNGEON, PEASENT! BUT, UNFORTUNATELY, IT IS YOUR JOB TO FULFILL THE PROPHECY AND SLAY OUR ENEMIES!" He walked quickly towards her and put a laser sword under her chin. Lilly starred, shocked.

"Now then," he said, anger in his voice, "be a _good_ little girl and SHUT UP-poke-"

The King looked to his left, and jumped back when he saw the barrel of Ratchet's Rynocerator.

"Leave…her…alone…" Ratchet cried angrily. The King stood there, his eyes squinted.

"Did you just _order_ me to do something?" he asked.

"As a matter of fact, I did!" He said. He pulled out a badge from his pocket. "You see this? This badge signifies that I am Captain of the Starship Phoenix, and liable to place under arrest _anybody_ who harms others. So, unless you want to change into your orange jump-suit now, BACK…OFF!"

The King glared, but withdrew his laser sword. He then turned and walked towards his throne.

"You're dismissed," he said darkly. He threw the storage cube at Lilly's knees. She slowly picked it up and placed it on her belt. He need not say more; Ratchet, Clank, and a still teary-eyed Lilly walked towards the teleportation pad, and phased out of the room.

When he was sure they were gone, he turned towards Shirley. "Shirley, I want you to go to the armory and gather weapons."

The nobleman blinked. "Do you wish of me to follow them?" he asked.

"Yes…that is _exactly_ what I want you to do!" he said in a dark…dark voice.

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**A/N:** Well, there you have it, chapter 5! I'm sorry if it's a little choppy; I had writer's block the whole time writing it. Enjoy, and remember to Read and Review!

P.S. It'll be a little longer before I continue the story. I have found a way to keep myself from becoming too bored with a story. I've got an idea for a funny humor fic waiting in the wings. What I'll do is write two chapters for that, write two more for this story, and repeat. The switch should help a lot, and keep me from going to snooze-vile.


	6. Finally, some answers!

**A/N**: That's right, chapter six is here and ready to be read! Please ignore any claims from my last chapter of another story. I _did_ have an idea…but decided to stick to my policy of one story at a time.

**Disclaimer**: Okay, I've said it too many times so I won't say, "I don't own Ratchet and Clank". …hey, wait a minute! (Doh!)

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_When he was sure they were gone, he turned towards Shirley. "Shirley, I want you to go to the armory and gather weapons."_

_The nobleman blinked. "Do you wish of me to follow them?" he asked._

"_Yes…that is __exactly__ what I want you to do!" he said in a dark…dark voice._

-----------------------------------

Ratchet was fuming, Lilly was still teary-eyed, and Clank with in deep thought. All three had reappeared in the forest and were now returning to the village.

They walked in silence for a long time, none of them saying a word. Well…except for Ratchet, who was swearing up and down under his breath.

"I can't believe that guy!" Ratchet finally said aloud, breaking the fog of silence that had been hanging over the trio. "I should have blasted him to kingdom-come!"

"Ratchet…" Lilly said, stopping, "if you had killed him, you'd be in the dungeon." Ratchet stopped and gave a puzzled look.

"But he threatened you," Ratchet said. "As Captain of the Starship Phoenix-"

"That's just it: Nifan3 isn't a planet ruled under the Galactic President. It never became a part of the Galactic States."

Ratchet looked surprise. "You mean that at any time…I could have been arrested?" Lilly nodded. "Why wasn't I then?"

"Because…he knew you weren't afraid of him! He knew you could beet him! He's a coward Ratchet; cowards won't stand up to people who defend themselves!" Lilly was getting teary-eyed again.

"Miss Lilly," Clank began, "I think that you should sit down," he pointed to a log off the path, "and explain what, as Ratchet would say, 'is the big deal about this guy'."

Lilly grinned at Clank's Ratchet impersonation. "Okay, okay, as you wish." She sat down on the log as Ratchet and Clank sat on the path to listen.

"There once was a king of this land, whose fairness and wisdom was known throughout the land. Under his rule, or land was a beautiful and bustling metropolis. Our advances in medicine, technology, and vast other items rivaled those made by the top scientists in Bogon!"

"What happened?" Ratchet asked.

Lilly looked down, glaring. "_He_ happened. This ruler had a wife, who in turn bore a son with him."

"The current king?" Clank asked.

"Yes," Lilly confirmed, "yes, it is he whom I speak of. His mother was selfish and greedy, yet beautiful beyond words. She dreamed of having powers far greater than any king once had. To accomplish this goal, she taught her son many crafts. His most valuable, however, was his ability to manipulate and control those he needed to use. He used this on a young knight, the one we meet earlier."

"Shirley!" Ratchet cried. "I knew he was bad news!"

"He paid an assassin to attack and kill his family, and then convinced him that his father was the one who sent the assassin. Enraged, the Shirley, who was closest to the king, crept into his chambers and killed the king in his sleep."

Clank's eyes widened. "T-that is…horrible!" Ratchet started fuming again.

"His body was discovered; the queen 'convinced' the detectives to cease any investigation, and she was appointed as the Empress of the land."

"That explains why they referred to the current king's chambers as a palace," Clank blurted.

"Whoa, whoa, slow down!" Ratchet exclaimed. "First off, if he's an Emperor, why do they call him a 'King'? Secondly, what happened to the original Empress?"

"I was getting to that," Lilly said. "Now, the Empress had complete control over the planet; nothing could stop her. Nothing except…her son. He convinced Shirley, by saying that it was the queen's idea to kill his family, to help kill her so that he could take command of the throne."

"Why would he believe that?" Ratchet asked.

"Because, the queen was often upset by the actions of Shirley; they hated each other deeply. This also went towards the king, as the king sided with her and often punished him for it."

Ratchet was pacing, swearing all the while. Clank, however, had his full attention on Lilly.

"Miss Lilly," began Clank, "is there not _more_ to be told?"

"Yes, there is Clank," Lilly answered. "After his takeover, he made various 'changes'. He ordered that all technology but the simplest of kinds be removed. That way, no one would have the tools to lead a takeover of his throne. Second, he placed these chips in everyone. Men, women, children, _anyone_ who lived on this planet had them placed inside. If anyone were to try to harm the new king, or if you made him angry, the chip would latch onto the brain and send a lethal shock in order to kill the enemy."

"Including you?" Clank asked.

"Yes…me too," After she said this, Lilly looked down, new tears running down her cheeks.

"Miss Lilly…what is the matter?" Clank asked, concerned. Ratchet stopped ranting and looked over at the crying Lombax.

"Remember-_sniffle_- what I said-_sniffle-_ about what that tyrant had 'done to my family?" Lilly cried. The two heroes nodded. "My mother-_sniffle_- my father-_sniffle_- grew sick of this tyrant. One day, when I was thirteen-_sniffle-_ t-they left. They…they said-_sniffle-_t-that," Lilly was trying hard to speak through the tears falling down her cheeks. She managed to continue, saying, "They said that they were going to force the new king off the throne. Th-that they wouldn't rest until he was dead."

"But that didn't happen…did it?" Ratchet asked.

"N-no…it didn't," Lilly cried. "I later found out-_sniffle_- t-the next day that…that…"

"'That' what?' Ratchet asked.

"T-that he…killed them!" Lilly broke into a hard series of sobs, tears streaming down her cheeks in little rivers. Even Ratchet grew a little teary, seeing her in so much emotional pain. "H-he-_sob-_used the chips to-_sob-_ k-kill them!" Lilly broke into uncontrollable sobs, falling to the ground.

Ratchet came over and kneeled down to comfort the crying Lombax. "That's why you hate him so much…isn't it?" Ratchet asked.

Lilly nodded, trying hard to regain herself.

"Miss Lilly," Clank asked, "why where you sent off of the planet?" Lilly held her head up, looking at the small robot. "When we first met, you said that you had 'been gone from here WAY too long'. Where were you?"

"Another story for another time," she said hastily. "We had best get moving again; the sooner we defeat Nefarious, the better!" She then stood up; wiping away any leftover tears, then started walking down the path again.

Clank stared, thinking hard. "She is hiding something."

"Huh?" Ratchet blurted.

"I said, she is hiding something," Clank repeated. "She has told us a great deal, but I have a feeling that there is something that she is not telling us."

"What, the reason she left her planet?" Ratchet asked. "That's a personal thing, Clank."

"Yes, but riddle me this," Clank said, "If the King does not want an uprising, would it not make sense to restrict planetary travel?" Ratchet thought for a moment.

"Maybe she escaped?" Ratchet offered.

"If that were true, why did she come back?" Clank countered. "In addition, wouldn't the King have detonated that chip inside her skull if she escaped? Face it Ratchet, there is something that she does not want us to know, out of her fear of the King!"

"Well, what do you expect!?" Ratchet cried. "He killed her mother AND her father!"

"Even so, I still would like to know what it is she is keeping from us," Clank said.

"Whatever," Ratchet said waving his hand.

"Hey! What are you waiting for?" Lilly called, a good deal ahead of the bickering heroes.

"Coming!" Ratchet called. He then turned back towards Clank. "Don't worry Clank, she'll tell us sooner or later." With that, Ratchet jogged ahead to catch up with Lilly.

'I do hope she does,' Clank thought, turning into thruster mode in order to catch up with the two Lombaxes.

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**A/N:** There you have it, my sixth chapter of "The Legend". I know it was short…and it took me awhile…and that in my profile I threatened to delete this story…but, it's here! More or less, this chapter was meant to answer some questions (and ask new ones), so not much story progression. (Hopefully) the next chapter will be here soon, so you shouldn't have to wait long! Until then, I have two words…

…Read and Review!

Huh? That's _three_ words? Er, um, I-I meant three! Yeah, it was…um…a typo! Yeah…just a typo…well, anyways, as I said Read and Review!


	7. Clank, quit being nosy!

**A/N**: Nothing to say other than: HERE COMES CHAPTER SEVEN! (Wahoo!)

**Disclaimer**: Huh? Me, own Ratchet and Clank? AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! (Looks at S.W.A.T team of lawyers descending to the ground with lawsuits ready) AHHH!!! HOW MANY TIMES MUST I SAY IT; I _DO NOT_ OWN RATCHET AND CLANK!!! (Lawyers groan, and walk away)

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"_Coming!" Ratchet called. He then turned back towards Clank. "Don't worry Clank, she'll tell us sooner or later." With that, Ratchet jogged ahead to catch up with Lilly. _

'_I do hope she does,' Clank thought, turning into thruster mode in order to catch up with the two Lombaxes. _

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-_Nefarious' Lair-_

Nefarious was pacing around his office. Once again, Vox, with Bruno and Jeice, were present.

"So," began Nefarious as he continued to pace, "you said these robots of yours were 'invincible' eh?"

"Yes," Vox said, rolling his eyes.

"That there was no way Ratchet could _ever_ beat them?" Nefarious continued.

"Yes," Vox replied again.

"Tell me then…HOW THE BLARG DID RATCHET MANAGE TO DEFEAT THEM!?!?" Nefarious screeched. "WE SENT _EVERY_ TROOP WE HAD AND HE _STILL_ DESTROYED THEM!!!"

"Calm down, calm down," Vox said. "That was just the test run! Once we fix the bugs, the Dreadzone bots will be completely _unstoppable_!"

Nefarious folded his arms and glared. "You're on thin ice, squishy!" he spat. "I'd watch my back if I were you…"

"Now, now, temper, temper sir!" Lawrence warned. "We wouldn't want you to have another breakdown, now would we?"

Nefarious glared again. "Same goes for you, too!" he said. "You're dismissed, Vox!" Vox left the room, with his two bodyguards by his side. Nefarious patiently waited until he was sure Vox was out of earshot. Just to make sure, he opened the door and scanned the entire hallway for bugs. Not a single not bug to be found. He scanned his office too. Same as before, no hidden microphones, cameras, nothing but his chair, computer, and, of course, a confused Lawrence stood in the office.

"Pardon me sir," Lawrence began, "but might I ask why you are looking around aimlessly in your office."

Nefarious looked at him, but said nothing. As a final precaution, he walked over and turned off his computer, just to be safe. He closed the door, and turned his attention to his butler.

"Sir, I really would like to know what this is all about," Lawrence said patiently.

"Lawrence, I don't trust him," Nefarious answered. "He's not the ordinary kind of squishy you meet; he actually knows how to use his head." Nefarious pointed towards his dome for emphasis. "I need you to do something for me, and I'm sure that even now, after all my scanning and precautions, he's _somehow_ listening in on us!"

Lawrence raised an "eyebrow". "Are you certain? My scanners show no signs of-"

**BOOM!** Nefarious blasted a corner of the wall. What fell down was _formally_ an invisible camera made so that ordinary scanners could not pick it up.

"-bugs…oh dear," Lawrence said, troubled. "Do you wish for me to have him annihilated, then?"

"No, no, just keep an eye on him," Nefarious answered. "AND," Nefarious leaned in closely and whispered his demand to Lawrence. It wasn't in English either; it was in a code only robots could understand.

"Ah, I see. Very well then, as you wish," Lawrence said. He then walked off to continue his regular routine of cooking, cleaning, and folding Nefarious' "undergarments".

-_At the village-_

Ratchet, Clank, and Lilly had re-arrived at the village from earlier. As they walked down the streets, several of the inhabitants looked up at the trio. They began murmuring to each other quietly, which bugged Ratchet.

"Why are they staring at us like this?" Ratchet asked Lilly quietly. Something about hundreds of people starring at once seemed to unnerve him. It felt like he was being examined; like some freak experiment at a lab.

"It's very rare for a villager to use technology…and come back alive," she answered.

"Would you not fall into that category, Miss Lilly?" Clank asked, still trying to get information out of her. Lilly looked caught off guard.

"Well…um, you see…" Lilly struggled to find some words to cover herself. Clank stared at her, a look of patience on his face. "Um…hey Ratchet, shouldn't we start towards Nefarious' base?" she called, trying to change the subject. Clank stared at Ratchet, trying to get him to talk to her.

"Um…" Ratchet was looking at Clank as his stare slowly turned into a glare. "Well…I'd like to know about that too. How come The King's never done anything to you?" She looked at him funny.

"Is it _really _any of your business?" she asked."We better find a way to get to Nefarious."

"_She is hiding something,_" Clank whispered rhythmically.

"_Shut up!"_ Ratchet hissed back, mocking Clank's tone of voice.

"_Not until you make her tell us what is going on!"_ Clank hissed back. _"Ratchet, we barely know her! What she is hiding may be vital to our mission!" _Ratchet sighed.

"_Ya' know…I _really_ hate it when you're right," _Ratchet said, glaring. Clank smiled in triumph. The two walked over towards Lilly, who was standing in the spot where Ratchet and she had fought off the Dreadzone bots.

"I know where he is!" Lilly said excitedly.

"Really?" Ratchet cried surprised. "H-how do you know?"

"Well, we know those Dreadzone bots probably didn't walk here, right?" she asked.

"Yeah, they probably teleported," Ratchet said, his finger to his chin in thought. "Not easy to track them. We'd need-"

"A Gadgetron Tele-Tracker?" she said slyly, holding up the miniature device in her right hand. It looked much like a remote control, only it had a small halo-screen, an antenna, and a keypad. Ratchet's eyes widened. "According to this, Nefarious' base is somewhere on the far side of the planet, near Mt. Claw back."

"Weird name for a mountain…but, at least we know where Nefarious is!" Ratchet said happily. "We better get going soon! Better go back to our ships and fly there."

"Won't work…" Lilly said. Ratchet's jaw dropped.

"Why the Blarg not!?" Ratchet cried.

"Mt. Claw back is actually a series of mountains that form a circle around a smaller mountain with a flat top. Also, there is a series of mini-mountains that run on each side, forming the shape of claws-hence the name Claw back. It's made of a tough alloy, one so strong that it makes Carbonox look like paper confetti!"

"Well," Ratchet started, "we'll just fly above it and into that hole!"

Lilly shook her head. "All sorts of creatures live inside that mountain, including a rare species of bird called Acigeon. It's kind of like a pigeon, but instead of crapping on your ship…it showers you with an acid that melts the thickest of alloys, with the exception of the Mountain itself of course. The armor on our ships wouldn't be thick enough!"

Ratchet's ears dropped. "You're telling me that there is _no way_ of getting into that mountain by ship?" Lilly nodded. "How long would it take to walk there?"

Lilly put a hand to her head, thinking. "Hmm…probably, let's see…five months." Ratchet's jaws dropped. "And that's _if_ we flew to the bottom of the mountain! It's so high up; our heads would explode before we even came _close_ to the peak anyway…"

Ratchet went into a fit, calling Nefarious every name under the sun. "SON OF A QWARK! HOW DO WE GET THERE NOW!?"

"We could go back to the Phoenix," Clank suggested. Ratchet's eyes widened, as he realized how obvious that was. He slapped himself on the head.

Lilly's eyes widened. "The Phoenix? You mean _the _Starship Phoenix? Wow…that would be _so_ cool!" Lilly almost seemed to dance with glee. Ratchet and Clank exchanged looks as if they were watching a crazy person juggle angry cats.

Ratchet realized something. "Uh, Lilly…I don't think it's such a good idea if you come," Ratchet said hastily. She stopped jumping for joy long enough to comprehend what Ratchet said.

"Why not?" she asked.

"Well…because…um," Ratchet tried to make an excuse. She looked at Ratchet, waiting for an answer.

'C'mon Ratchet, think!' Ratchet thought desperately. 'If Sasha sees you with another girl, she may _never_ speak to you again! Think, Ratchet, think…'

"Only galactic officials such as Ratchet can board the Phoenix," Clank said. Ratchet sighed in relief. It didn't last long though, for Clank added, "However, if you are willing to join us in our fight against Nefarious, you _can_ board the Phoenix." Ratchet slapped himself.

"Well, then I see no harm in going to the Phoenix," Lilly said bluntly. "Let's go."

"Hold up!" Ratchet said hastily. "We don't know where the Phoenix is at this point! The crew could have driven it anywhere!"

Suddenly, Clank's chest beeped. He pulled out a Holo-vid screen. Instead of someone's head popping into view, however, there was a written message.

"It says 'return to the Phoenix immediately Ratchet. Sasha has told me all about your little 'scheme' to take on Nefarious! I want you back here immediately to strategize with the newly re-instated Q-Force! Signed: The Galactic President. P.S. Hug my daughter again and I'll sick the Galactic SWAT team on your sorry'…" Clank stared at the screen, eyes widened. "Oh my, I never knew the president had such foul language!"

"Say what? Lemme' look!" Ratchet said. He grabbed it and started reading. "Return to Phoenix…scheme revealed…don't touch Sasha... (Um, anybody else notice how _wrong_ that sounds?)…and…" Ratchet's eyes widened too. Lilly, who was reading over his shoulder, started laughing.

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Lilly fell on the ground laughing at Ratchet.

"OH SHUT UP!" Ratchet cried, embarrassed. The Galactic President did more than call him a dirty name; he threatened to spill out a dirty secret…a secret he typed in his message. The laughing continued, and Ratchet, yet again, cursed out the GP.

"Let's go," Ratchet said, still simmering. He then walked towards the road that led to his ship, followed by a confused Clank and a still-hysterical Lilly.

"Wow Ratchet, never knew you were such a 'master'. When where you gonna tell me?" Lilly joked.

"As soon as you told me whatever it is you're hiding!" Ratchet snapped, whipping around to face her. She was, again, caught off guard. "If you're gonna keep stuff from us, then we have the right to do the same!"

Lilly sighed. "Is it _really_ any of your bussiness?"

"YES!" Ratchet and Clank proclaimed in unison.

"You two are nosy!" she declared.

"Lilly, if there's somsething about this mission your hiding that we need to know, now's the time to tell us," Ratchet pleaded.

Lilly sighed again, "Okay, I get it; if we're gonna work as a team, we need to be informed. As long as it's not too personal, I'll tell you. What do you want to know?"

"Why did you leave the planet, and why does the King allow you to use technology?" Clank asked.

She glared. "Now _that_ is personal business! I'll tell you anything that relates to our mission, but my business is my business darn it!" Ratchet glared at Clank, an "I told you so" look on his face. "However," she continued, "I _will_ tell you that I've met Nefarious before."

"What? You've _met_ Nefarious?" Ratchet asked. "How did you meet him?"

"When I was traveling, we bumped into each other a couple of times. I believe this was when you were in another galaxy. What was it called…Bogon?"

"That is correct," Clank answered.

"Anyway, he was stealing a bunch of items for his weapons. Most importantly was a ray that had the ability to transform and manipulate the mass and molecular structure of and organism."

"You mean…the Biobliterator?" Ratchet asked.

"Well…the basis for it, yes," Lilly answered. "Our paths crossed and we fought. Briefly…he ended up defeating me. He also killed a lot of civilians in the process…"Lilly looked down, fury gathering in her eyes. "I swore from that day if I ever saw him again, I would make him pay for what he did! The killing wasn't necessary either; he did it to unnerve me!"

"I see…that is why you grimaced when we mentioned him," Clank concluded. He looked down, sorrow on his face. "I am sorry for being so nosy. I think that, as you say, 'rubbed off' from Ratchet."

"Hey!" Ratchet cried, pointing at Clank. Lilly and Clank laughed. "Well, I wish you'd told me earlier; it's nice to know that we have an alley with experience against what we're fighting."

"Sorry," Lilly apologized. "I just didn't think it was that important. Besides, we _had_ just met…"

"True," Clank said, "but we wanted to know in case there was something about the King that troubled you, so we could help everyone here." Lilly's eyes widened. So did Ratchet's.

"Really," Ratchet said," are you _sure_ that was the reason you were being so nosy?"

Clank sighed. "I apologize, Miss Lilly. I thought you were hiding something that could help us overthrow this king. The thought of innocent civilians suffering…it just upsets my logic circuits to which they make me emit aggression, causing me to-"

"In other words, it made you mad," Ratchet finished.

Clank looked at him blankly. "That was what I was saying, Ratchet." The Lombax rolled his eyes, smiling.

Lilly realized what Clank was doing. He wanted to gather information about the King so he could help overthrow him. She smiled.

"It's been a long time since an outsider has cared about my planet..." she said.

"We're sorry, it really wasn't any of our bussiness," Ratchet apologized.

"I, too, apologize Miss Lilly," Clank said. Lilly looked down and smiled again.

"Well, don't worry about that Clank," Lilly said, kneeling down. "One of these days, I'll find a way to get him off the throne." Clank looked up, his smile returning.

"I regret ever doubting you," Clank said.

"Don't sweat it. It's just that...well, when you've been through what I've been through, you have a hard time opening up to other people." She stood back up. "Well, we better get to the Phoenix before your girlfriend's dad blows of your 'master' plan." She giggled again as Ratchet fumed a little.

"Are you _ever_ going to let this go?" Ratchet asked.

"Okay, okay, I'll drop it!" Lilly said. "C'mon, let's head to our ships." With that, the trio began down the path in the forest.Clank feeling guilty, but satisfied that she had opened up a little information to them. Ratchet feeling like sticking a RYNO down the President's throat for revealing his "master" secret. Lilly wandering whether or not she had been too trusting, not trusting enough, or somewhere in between with Ratchet and Clank. They continued on, pondering these things in their minds...

However, they were oblivious to the spy who was watching them from a distance...

In fact, this spy was 6ft. 5in., wearing modified gray Carbonox armor, muscled up, and now had the addition of a cape and storage watch to his attire. He stood on a tree branch, silently watching the heroes depart for the Phoenix.

"She almost leaked the secret," the infamous Shirley said in his storage watch's built-in communicator. "She managed to keep her mouth shut, but that little robot is _determined_ to figure out her secret."

"You need not worry about that," the dark voiced that belonged to none-other than the King of Nifan3 assured. "We have something valuable to her, far much so than even her life! She won't talk."

"I know," the knight replied, "but that's not what has me worried. She's already told them about your 'rise' to power. They are about to leave to visit the Galactic President himself! What if that outsider tells him?"

"That problem will take care of itself," the King replied. "No doubt, Nefarious has discovered the presence of the Phoenix. He may even know about the President's presence onboard! I'm confident he will quickly eliminate them all…"

"But what of the girl? The prophecy _clearly_ states that she is needed if we are to fulfill it! She dies, so do our chances of fulfilling it!"

"Well then…I suggest you get yourself a ship and follow them." The King replied dryly.

"As you wish," Shirley replied. "Over and out." He closed the link between their communicators and climbed down the tree. He then pressed another button. The tree he just stood on revealed itself to be another teleportation device! He stepped in and vanished in a green light.

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**A/N:** Oooh…cliffy. It seems that the "legend" part of my title, "The Legend" is starting to reveal itself. Not much happening in this chapter other than more question answering (and asking). I had a "little" writer's block, so if it's not flowing smoothly you know why. Many thanks to MoonlightUmbreon, who has/is/and hopefully still will be reviewing my story. As of now, this story is my longest _ever_ posted! (Hooray!) Yet, few people review it. (Darn…) You know the drill; reviews keep me happy, when I'm happy I write, and when you get to read what I write…everyone's happy! (Okay, maybe I'm tooting my own horn a _little_ bit too much…) Please review, I love to know what you think of this story! There's a reason they have that "Send review" button, y'know! Bye!


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